Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi: Pushing further the efforts to firm up a Third Front, top leaders of Left, AIADMK, Samajwadi Party, Janata Dal (United) and JD(S) met here on Tuesday to chalk out a common charter of programmes.
Speaking after the meeting, CPI(M) leader Prakash Karat said 11 parties will work together to defeat the UPA and stop the BJP from coming to power in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
“BJP`s policies are same as that of the Congress; we will present the third alternative,” Karat said after the meeting of 11 parties.
"Leaders of 11 parties have resolved to fight upcoming Lok Sabha elections together," he said.
"Keeping in mind Lok Sabha elections, we decided that leaders of 11 parties should meet and decide on cooperation and working together," he added.
On the issue of leadership of the front, Karat said that the PM candidate of the alternative front can be decided after the Lok Sabha elections.
Today`s meeting came nearly a week after top leaders of the non-Congress, non-BJP parties met to chalk out a common strategy.
Sources say that the parties could jointly hold one or two public rallies to send out a message of unity of a non-Congress, non-BJP force ahead of the General Elections.
CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury had earlier said that any Third Front alliance would only take shape after the Lok Sabha polls and not in the run up to it.
Giving indications of emergence of a Third Front, 11 non-Congress, non-BJP parties had on February 5 formally joined hands as a block in Parliament to pitch for pro-people, anti-communal and federal agenda.
Today`s meeting was not attended by Asom Gana Parishad and Biju Janata Dal but Karat said the leaders of these parties had conveyed in advance their reasons for not being able to attend.
